Unwritten
by KitsuneEnthusiast
Summary: Their story hasn't been written... yet. Edward Elric's son, Alex, ran away from home at 16, leaving his sister, Sarah, behind. They kept in touch, but Alex kept his life a secret. What happens when Alex comes for a visit, bringing along a friend. What happens when Sarah Elric meets Maes Mustang?
1. Surprises

There was a light knocking sound. I opened my eyes slightly; the room was dimly lit as the curtains were still closed. It was already morning? I could have sworn I had just fallen asleep… The door creaked open.

"Sarah? It's time to get up. Breakfast is ready" My father said quietly. I groaned.  
"I'll be up in a few minutes Dad…" I grumbled and pulled my blanket over my head. The door didn't shut like it usually did when this happened. Obviously Dad wasn't going to give up this morning.  
"Sarah Trisha Elric, if you don't get up I _will _send your mother in." He threatened. I sat up and quickly made my way out of bed, just to see the smiling face of my father. "That's more like it!" And with that, he left me to get dressed. If there was one thing you didn't want to face, it was my Mom in the morning if you weren't awake and eating breakfast.

I got dressed quickly. It was summer so I just put on some blue shorts and a too big green tank top. I wondered for a split second if Dad would get angry with me and tell me to change, but I disregarded the thought. Even if he did, Mom would tell him to shut up about it. They had known each other since they were really little, my parents. Whenever Mom told me stories of when they were young, I wished I could have a relationship like theirs. Dad and Uncle Al even said I looked just like Mom did when she was younger.

I brushed out my hair out quickly before leaving my room. Most girls will tell you how much they love having long hair, but really it's a pain in the ass. It's always getting tangled and caught on things, and if it's light enough in colour you can never go a day without washing it. My hair was no exception.

Dragging myself down the hallway after battling my hair, I could already smell breakfast. Eggs, hash browns, toast and mmhm… bacon. Significantly happier by the thought of having bacon for breakfast, I smiled cheerfully as I walked into the kitchen. Mom was setting down a plate for me while Dad made them coffee.

"There you are Sarah! I was wondering when you were going to get up! Your Aunt and Uncle are coming over today so I want you to shower, clean your room up, and help out around the house," Mom told me as I sat down at the table and began to devour my food. Uncle Al and Auntie Elle were coming for a visit?!  
"They're really coming to visit? Really?" I asked, my mouth still full.  
"Sarah don't talk with your mouth full!" Mom scolded me. I gulped down the food that was in my mouth.  
"Sorry mom," I mumbled and just shoved more food into my mouth. Auntie Elle always told me even though I looked like Mom I acted just like my dad. Of course my older brother Alex got all of the good traits from him though. I gave up trying to upstage him years ago. Dad's chuckle broke me out of my thoughts.  
"Winry, talking with her mouth full isn't the worst she could do. At least she's talking to you" he told her. I tried not to nod in agreement.  
"That's not the point Edward! The point it she is 16 and she still doesn't act civilized!" Mom complained. I shrugged and went back to my eggs.  
"And we did when we were 16? Give her a break, Win…" Dad said and pulled her close.  
"Ed!" She said angrily but he kissed her anyways.  
"NOT IN FRONT OF ME!" I complained but they just laughed.  
"You think its gross now but one day you'll find a guy that you'll love" Mom teased me. Ugh. I felt like just letting my head fall onto my plate. All the guys in Resembool were idiots and I hadn't even been allowed to visit Alex in central.  
"She's not having a boyfriend until she's 18!" Dad said suddenly. This started a whole new argument between them. Maybe I didn't want a relationship like theirs…  
"I'm having a shower." I announced, only to be ignored. I might as well get ready before Auntie Elle and Uncle Al get here anyways.

—-

My shower didn't last nearly as long as I had hoped it would. Mom had knocked on the door told me to hurry up so I could help clean. She said she had to go to her automail workshop out back and work on some things. So it was up to me and Dad to clean up. To be honest, Dad and I didn't talk much. Growing up, he was away a lot. Away on business, our parents would say. Alex read all of Dad's and Uncle Al's old books. We learned alchemy when he was away, because he didn't like the thought of us learning it. Mom never found out. At least not until Alex told them he wanted to join the military as a state alchemist with help from a pen pal of his from central. Dad exploded. Alex ran away at 16. Three years ago now. I still practice alchemy when I'm by myself. Dad tried to be closer to me. A while back Alex got in touch with us, saying he had been living with his friend and his family, although he still didn't tell us who it was. He came back for holidays and visited often. It wasn't the same without him though. I know he and I fought a lot, but I still loved my older brother…

"Sarah, could you come here please?" Dad called me from the kitchen. I had been cleaning (trying to at least) my room. So far I had only made my bed and picked up some clothes. I was not the tidiest person. Another trait I got from Dad.  
"What, Dad?" I asked as I walked into the kitchen. He didn't look up from washing dishes.  
"You have to hurry up cleaning, your Aunt and Uncle will be here earlier than we thought, and the phone's for you" he said and nodded his head towards our phone. Who would be calling me? Leaning against the counter, I grabbed the phone.

"Hello?" I asked, almost hesitant. I didn't usually talk on the phone unless it was Auntie Elle or…  
"Hey Lil' sis! How are you?" Alex asked loudly. I gasped and smiled.  
"Alex!" I said surprised. He laughed. "I'm good! Cleaning right now though. Mom's out back in her workshop. Dad's doing dishes. But what about you? How's central? How's your friend? How's work?" I asked eagerly. Of course he wouldn't tell me about his friend. He never did, but hey, I had to try! Alex just chuckled.  
"Work's fine kiddo. The bar's been a little rowdy lately, but when's it now?." He said, conveniently ignoring that I had inquired about his friend. Alex worked in a bar, if that wasn't obvious enough. "But actually… I wanted to ask you something," he said quieting his voice. I leaned down closer to the counter.  
"Yeah?" I asked curiously. He cleared his throat before speaking again. Dad tried leaning close to the phone to listen to what was going on. I pushed him away and he went back to the dishes.  
"Never mind, it's nothing. But, uh, Uncle Al and Auntie Elle are going to be at the house tonight aren't they?" Alex asked. I frowned confused. What was he going to ask?  
"Uh, yeah. Why?" I asked him. How did he know?  
"Good then," His voice went quiet again. "Don't tell Dad but… I might be dropping in soon. Friend included" I gasped loudly, Dad asked what had happened. I shushed him and went back to talking in hushed tones with Alex. Dad left the kitchen.  
"Really?! I'm so excited! Mom will be too! Oh and Aunt Elle has been wondering who your friend is as well!" I said excited. Well, at least I had more motivation to clean! Mom said if my room wasn't clean by lunch I wasn't allowed out of it all night. Alex chuckled nervously.  
"Yeaaah, don't tell Mom either. Or Aunt Elle if she's there before us. I want it to be a surprise." Alex told me. I nodded.  
"Of course! I won't tell anyone, I promise!" I said quickly. I heard a train whistle in the background.  
"I have to go, Sarah. Our train's here. But I'll be there soon! I promise!" He said before hanging up.  
"See you soon!" I said quickly.

Alex was always like this, secretive. He was also manipulative and impatient though. He inherited a lot of things from Dad that I didn't (as far as I know). I hung up the phone and turned around to see Dad leaning against the door frame.

"So, what did Alex have to say?" He asked, smiling, but his voice indifferent. I frowned.  
"You know he never says much. He just wanted to check up on me," It never really registered how easy it was for me to lie to Dad. I know I couldn't do it Mom with as much as ease, but I guess it just came naturally when I talked to Dad.  
"Oh really? Has he passed the State Alchemist test yet?" He asked.  
"Daaaaad," I groaned. "It's not your business what Alex does. He's a legal adult now." I could already tell he was getting angry. His hands clenched into fists and he took a deep breath.  
"Fine then," was all he said before leaving the room. Seconds later, I heard the door open and slam shut. Did Dad just… give up the argument? That wasn't like him… Maybe his leg was just bothering him. Yeah, that was probably it.

I spent the rest of the morning cleaning my room. Did you know that if you clean out your closet entirely that you might find a mouse? Yeah, well, I'm pretty sure I'm going to be keeping my room clean from now on. Or at least cleaner than I had been keeping it.

In actuality it didn't take long to clean my room at all. By the time I was done, Dad still hadn't come back and Mom was still out in her workshop, so I decided to clean up the rest of the house.

By lunch time, neither of them were back. I would have gotten worried, if it were someone other than my parents. Dad was probably just bothering Mom while she worked, or Dad was taking our dog Luna for a walk. Either way, I was almost done cleaning. I should have been done before lunch, but I had tripped over the mop bucket and had to clean the hallway again.

I was wiping the living room table clean when I heard the familiar sound of the front door opening. "Hellloooooo?" A man's voice called out. I knew that voice anywhere. Footsteps echoed throughout the house as the two people walked in and set their bags down. I completely forgot the task at hand, dropped my cloth and ran towards the door.

"Uncle Al!" I squealed, throwing my arms around the tall man. He was a few inches taller than Dad. I always thought he was stronger too. They hadn't spared since Alex and I were little though.  
"Sarah!" Uncle Al said surprised as he caught me. "Where's your mom and dad?" He asked as he set me down.  
"Mom's out in her workshop and I don't know where Dad went," I admitted sheepishly. I turned to Auntie Elle. Auntie Elle was a petite woman; we were often mistaken for the same age by those who didn't know us. She was a bit taller than me, about 5'5. She had short light brown hair. When she was younger, her hair had been longer than mine though. She had hazel eyes that were greener than anything, and she was the best aunt ever. I squealed again and threw my arms around her. "Auntie Elle!" I heard Uncle Al chuckle beside us. Auntie Elle hugged me as tightly as she could muster. She didn't look like she was doing all that well.

"Hi there Sarah, how's my favourite niece?" She asked, trying to smile. My smile faltered and I frowned.  
"Are you okay Auntie?" I asked, tilting my head. The both of them went quiet.  
"Well, there's more than one reason we came to visit, Sarah…" Uncle Al started.  
"First, we wanted to visit our loving family…" Auntie Elle continued.  
"Second, we want to renovate Elle's old house so we can move in…" I felt a grin spread across my face at the idea, but nodded to make them continue on.  
"And lastly, I'm pregnant. Sarah, you're going to have a baby cousin" Auntie Elle finished. I felt my face just drop in shock. I looked from Auntie Elle to Uncle Al and then to Auntie Elle's stomach.

"Really?!" I asked excited. They nodded in simultaneous agreement. I covered my face with my hands and let out a squeal. So many awesome things were happening!  
"We weren't sure if Elle would have been okay to make the trip, which is why we've put off telling you guys. We wanted to tell you in person" Uncle Al told me. Auntie Elle huffed at him.  
"I made the trip didn't I? I could always make the trip," she grumbled. I smiled and moved aside to actually let them walk down the hallway.

"I'll put your bags in the first guest room upstairs, okay?" I told them as they went into the living room. Uncle Al protested for a moment but I was already off like a bullet, their bags in my hands. There was nothing I couldn't do when I was this excited.

After I put their bags in the guest room upstairs, I stopped in the hallway before heading back downstairs to open the window. It was a beautiful day outside. The birds were chirping, you could hear the river flowing, and of course the sound of my mother working in her workshop (at least I hope what I heard was her working).

"MOM!" I yelled out the window, disrupting the birds. "UNCLE AL AND AUNTIE ELLE ARE HERE!" Hey. It was faster than running out there to tell her! I made my way downstairs after that.

In the kitchen, making lemonade, I could hear Uncle Al fussing over Auntie Elle. Was she too hot? Did she need something to drink? Something to eat? Auntie Elle argued with him to stop fussing over her, she could take care of herself. I smiled to myself as I heard them bicker. No matter how much they bickered though, they would never get into a fully-fledged fight. They would always be holding each other's hands and were almost never separated. At least, this is how I knew them. Maybe they were different when they were younger. I changed my mind; I didn't want a relationship like Mom and Dads. I wanted one like theirs. Auntie Elle had been friends with my Mom and Dad and Uncle Al almost all of their lives, she was the comedic relief most of the time. She always knew what to say. Hell, she's gotten me out of trouble more times than I can count just by poking fun at the situation.

"You guys want some lemonade?" I asked bringing a pitcher and some cups into the living room. They immediately ceased their bickering and happily took some (although Uncle Al insisted he pour it for us).  
"Thank you, Sarah" Auntie Elle thanked me. I just smiled, unable to respond before the back door swung open. My parents were back. Finally.

"Al! Elle!" they said in surprise, seeing them on the couch.  
"Brother!" "Winry!" Auntie Elle and Uncle Al said, respectively. I smiled as Dad and Uncle Al and Mom and Auntie Elle embraced. They were definitely closer than Alex and I were. Dad and Uncle Al treated each other like equals. Alex still saw me as the little sister. I smiled slightly as Auntie Elle looked back at me with some concern. I must have zoned out...

I began to genuinely smile again once I realized what they were talking about. Mom squealing in excitement just as I had and Dad yelled out in celebration. Obviously tonight would be a night of celebration. I wondered how Alex would react to the news of a baby cousin. Too much was happening too fast, and I didn't care. As long as my family was happy.


	2. Accident

Resembool was a quiet little village. Even after years and years, still not many people were living here. There was a train station and maybe twenty houses spread across the land, and that included the houses that had been abandoned.

I had gone outside for a walk a little bit after lunch. You can only handle being around the Elric family for so long without needing a break. At first, I had just gone outside to see Luna. Luna was an old dog; we got her as a pup when I was six so she was about ten years old. But we had ended up walking down the road. I greeted a few people and ignored others I had known from school. I never really had friends. Alex was my only friend and Alex really didn't have friends either. We kept to ourselves, learning everything we could.

We would always pester Uncle Al and Auntie Elle when they were going to have a baby so we would have another friend, but look how long that took. They had been together for a good twenty years, and they had only gotten married five years ago (I was the flower girl). It always struck me as odd when I thought about it. I didn't know why it took them so long. But then again… I still didn't know everything about them either.

Luna broke me out of my thoughts as she began to bark. She never left my side as she barked. I had been walking slowly, looking at the ground but I had stopped to look into the fields. Luna's barking made me look ahead of us. We were at the train station. Huh, I didn't know we had been walking for so long. Mom's probably getting worried….

A train was pulling into the station, Luna never liked trains. That's most likely why she was barking. Almost no one ever got off in Resembool though. It was customary that they stopped. Sighing, I looked down at Luna. She was almost completely black, except for her stomach and part of her face that was white. Dad told me she looked like their old dog Den, Luna's mom. I don't remember Den all that well though. Dad told me I was only a baby when he passed away. Luna looked back up at me and tilted her head waiting for me to say something.

"Come on, Luna. Let's start heading home…" I told her as we turned around. We began to walk back towards home. How long had we been? It didn't seem like long but a walk to the train station usually took at least an hour…

We were not even five minutes down the road and of course, Luna took off running after something. She was a good dog, but when it came to animals not within her species there wasn't much you could do. She had begun to run back towards the train station after a stray cat. I would never hear the end of it from Dad if Luna got lost again.

"LUNA!" I yelled turning around and running after her. She had run up to the train platform, just as it left. "LUNA GET BACK HERE RIGHT NOW!" She wasn't coming back, why wasn't she coming back? She never went up the platform as it was. Oh god what if she fell off and got hit by the train?! "LUNA!" I yelled again nearing the station. I tripped and fell face first into the dirt. Did I mention I wasn't very coordinated? Because I'm not coordinated at all. I moved to get up but I couldn't stand up. My left ankle was twisted. "LUNA!" I sat up and yelled for her again. I had fallen down not even ten feet from the platform stairs. Luna appearing near the stairs suddenly and ran down them to greet me eagerly. She pounced and pinned me down licking my face. "Get off Luna!" I yelled pushing her off. What was with her? She got off instantly and sat patiently as I sat up. Damn dog… had me worried sick. What if she had actually gotten hurt?

"Why do you always have to be so reckless?" A familiar voice called down to me from the train platform. I had heard it just this morning…

"Alex!" I yelled turning to look up at him. He smirked down at me, holding his bag over his shoulder. The idiot was wearing a long sleeved shirt and green khaki shorts. Well, at least his sleeves were rolled up, must have retained some common sense when it came to Resembool in the summer. He was the same as ever. His hair was darker than mine, but lighter than Dad's. It was also shorter than Dad's but not as short as Uncle Al's. Just long enough to be pulled back into a short ponytail. He had Mom's blue eyes and was taller than the both of them. Six foot three, he grew to be. Auntie Elle said he got it from our grandfather, who was the tallest in our family. He hadn't grown at all since the last time I saw him, which I was relieved. Alex was twenty now, but I was still scared he was gonna grow more in between visits.

Alex made his way down the stairs quickly, not even bothering to say hi. He bent down to look at my ankle. "Aunt Elle is probably gonna have to take a look at this…" he murmured to himself. I nearly kicked him in the face.  
"You can at least say hello, jackass!" I said angrily. He chuckled.  
"Hello, jackass" He said looking at me. I glared at him for a moment, but soon enough we both dissolved into laughter. He pulled me into a hug briefly before holding me at arm's length. "Damn, Sarah. You haven't changed, can't leave you alone for five minutes" He said smirking. I frowned.  
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" I asked offended. He just shook his head and looked up at the platform. I followed his gaze to where a lone figure stood.

The person was obviously male. He had pitch black hair and seemed to be almost as tall as Alex. He was facing away from us so I had no way to get a good look at him just yet. Had this been the friend that Alex had been staying with these past few years?

"Hey! Maes! Come help me, would ya?" Alex called out to the boy. Maes, was it? Interesting name… The boy, who was wearing a blue short sleeved shirt and red shorts, turned away from whatever he had been looking at to look at Alex. His gaze turned from Alex to me in a matter of milliseconds. He had really pretty blue eyes… I looked away almost immediately as he ran over to us, jumping off the platform.

"Everything alright here?" He asked concerned. I could feel his gaze and it made me uncomfortable.  
"Maes, this is my sister Sarah and our dog Luna" Alex introduced us as he would normally. I waved awkwardly. Goddamnit Alex… he was too calm all the damn time. "Sarah, being my sister tripped and twisted her ankle obviously chasing after Luna. Wanna help us out here?" He asked. I see Alex didn't give up his way of making everything sound so formal.  
"Sure, Al! Whaddya want me to do?" Maes asked coming down to our level.  
"Could you just help her stand so I can carry her on my back?" Alex asked. Maes nodded, offering his hand for me to take. I took it gratefully and the two boys helped me stand on my one leg. Alex turned around and squatted just so I could put my arms around his neck and he could hold onto my legs. When we were younger, I was always the one to get hurt and he would always carry me home. Maes helped hold me steady as I waited for Alex.

"Ready?" I asked my brother.  
"Yep!" he replied and without further ado I threw my arms around his neck and hoped we didn't topple over.

We didn't fall over.

Alex caught me and straightened up. He turned so we faced Maes. Smiling, he said "Thanks Maes, we owe ya one" I nodded in agreement.  
"Nah its fine. Can't just leave a pretty girl in need now could we?" Maes replied as he pet Luna's head. He turned to smile at me. I could feel my face getting warm with blush. Or maybe I was just in the sun too long. Speaking of the sun it was nearing the sunset…

"Alex? Could we hurry up a bit? Dad's gonna be worried where I am…" I said quietly.  
"Oh! Yeah that's right!" Alex said as if he just remembered we had parents. Idiot. "If we don't, I'll probably end up sleeping outside!" He joked with Maes. I smiled lightly, but Alex was right about sleeping outside. If we weren't there before dark, there was no way Dad was going to let Alex inside.

Maes seemed content with bothering Luna as we waled and Alex was obviously carrying me. It had felt like a long day… but it couldn't even be past 4 in the afternoon… but my eyelids were growing heavy… Maybe if I just close them for a few moments…

—

The next time I opened my eyes, Alex was shaking me awake.

"'Rah you gotta get up we're almost there" Alex said loudly. I took a deep breath as I opened my eyes widely.  
"What? Where am I?" I asked suddenly but then it came back to me. I had tripped and Alex was carrying me on his back. We were almost home… Where Auntie Elle and Uncle Al were… and Dad and Mom… Dad and Mom! They were going to be so surprised. "Oh!" I said in realization before anyone could answer me.  
"Yeah, so could you not drool on me? Thanks" Alex said. I could just picture the smirk on his face. This time I did slap him upside the face, though not hard. I didn't want to have to walk on my bad foot.  
"I do not drool, you rat-monkey!" I said, still half asleep. I heard Maes laugh. Where had Maes and Luna gone? I could hear them but... I turned to see they were still right beside us. I breathed a sigh of relief that Luna hadn't run off again.

"She wasn't drooling, Al, but ha, rat-monkey. That's a new one" Maes said, and began to laugh again. Once he calmed down a bit Alex spoke up.  
"Nah, that's nothing new with Sarah here. Quiet the creative curser she is, aren't you Lil 'sis?" Alex asked, prodding me to swear some more. I shook my head.

"I ain't swearing 'cause you want me to. If I'm gonna swear its 'cause I'm pissed off" I managed to get out without slurring any words. Maes began to laugh again.

"Man, your sister is a blast. Why've you been keeping her from me?" Maes asked cheerfully. I felt my face go red but I just let my face fall onto Alex's shoulder to hide my blush.  
"More like why he's been keeping you from me, eh Alex?" I said not so quietly to Alex. He gave me a weird look but shook his head.

"Look, we're almost there" He said pointing at the house only a few minutes away.  
"Dude, that's your house?! Remind me why you ran away again…?" Maes asked. I smirked. If only Maes knew how our Dad could be when it came to alchemy… Alex sighed.  
"Our Dad didn't approve of me wanting to be a state alchemist" Alex said. It sounded as if he had said it a thousand times. He sped up a bit so suddenly I almost fell off. Things went silent. Was something wrong? Alex was never usually this… down. Wow even thinking it like that sounds weird.

"Well, Auntie Elle and Uncle Al are visiting and they have really good news!" I said in hopes that it might sheer him up, even a little.  
"What, they're finally getting a cat together?" He asked and laughed to himself. I guess I wasn't the only one who saw they had taken a long time with their relationship.  
"Nooo, well actually maybe. I don't know. But they have to tell you!" I said happily. Alex sighed.  
"I swear to god, 'rah. If you keep yelling in my ear, I will drop you," He said annoyed. I frowned.  
"Oh… sorry," I apologized. He shook his head.

Right at that moment, Luna decided to run ahead the twenty steps it took to the door and into the house through the dog door.

"Awe no fun" Maes said and sighed. "So, are the siblings having a moment or are we gonna go up to the door?" Alex didn't say a word; he just kept walking and went right up to the door.

"You can walk if I help you right?" Alex asked as he set me down carefully I nodded. Maes wasn'tt far behind us. I could hear Uncle Al's booming laughter.

Alex knocked on the door. The house went quiet. Footsteps were heard approaching the door. The door swung open and there stood Dad.

"Sarah? Alex?! What happened?" He asked looking around at us.

"Hey Dad, I found some strays. Can we keep 'em?" I asked smiling.


	3. Confession

The silence was suffocating.

Dad looked as if he were about to explode. Alex had his arm around me helping me to stand and Maes was standing awkwardly behind us, his hands in his pockets. Suddenly, Dad had taken my arm and pulled me inside only to slam the door shut behind me.

"Dad!" I yelled at him. What the hell? He couldn't just slam the door in Alex's face! Dad looked down at me and frowned.  
"Goddamn bastard" I heard him grumble before opening the door. Alex was still right there where he was standing before. Of course he knew Dad would act this way. He always knew what Dad would do.

"Alex," Dad said calmly, but strained.  
"Father," Alex replied. When would they get over this? It's been three years for god's sake!  
"You could have told us you were coming," Dad said and glanced at me for a moment. I shied away from his gaze and leaned against the wall for balance.  
"And you would have just let me come at such short notice?" Alex rebutted stepping closer to Dad.  
"Whoa guys let's just calm down and-" Maes started to say but Dad and Alex both cut him off.  
"Stay out of this!" They both told him.

"Dad!" I yelled at him again and he finally turned to face me, his face still contorted with anger. The anger in his face melted away as I felt tears start to rise. They couldn't come to terms with each other for three fucking years! The others stood around, staring at my father waiting for him to say something.

"Alex! Take your bags to your room" Dad ordered him before turning abruptly and walking into the living room, no doubt to tell Mom, Uncle Al, and Aunt Elle of our arrival. Alex groaned and did as he was told. The second floor of our house had three bedrooms, whereas the first floor had two. Alex took their bags and ran them upstairs, completely forgetting about me.

By this point, Maes had come into the house and shut the door. It was just me and him. He looked at me expectantly as if he was waiting for me to tell him where to go. We made eye contact for a brief moment before I broke it and stared at the ground. I couldn't walk on my ankle yet and it seemed as if everyone had forgotten.

"You okay there, Sarah?" Maes asked suddenly. I looked up at him and shook my head  
"My ankle…" I started but he nodded.  
"Alright c'mere, give me your arm" He said stepping closer to me and holding his arm out. I let him take my arm and he put his arm around me and helped me wobble down the hallway. Smiling, I snuck a side glance at him.  
"Thanks, Maes" I thanked him quietly just before we entered the living room.  
"Eh, it's no problem. Like I said, can't leave a pretty girl in need" He said and winked at me. I smiled and looked down.

"Sarah! What happened?" Mom asked suddenly, just realizing we were there. Dad and Roy were deep in conversation about politics, Riza and Auntie Elle were talking baby stuff and Mom and Al had been discussing dinner. I avoided her eyes, ashamed I had hurt myself again. I had just got my cast off my wrist last week from breaking it trying to do a cartwheel.

"I uh, fell and uh, twisted my ankle" I said sheepishly. Maes chuckled.  
"She was running after Luna and fell," he clarified. Mom just let out an exasperated sigh.

"Al, you're still good with Alkahestry right?" Mom asked Uncle Al. He nodded before taking a sip of lemonade.  
"Yeah, you want me to fix up Sarah's ankle I'm guessing?" Uncle Al responded. He didn't even wait for Mom's response. He stood up, took me from Maes, and sat me down in the armchair.

"You can do Alkahestry? Cool! I've never seen it before!" Maes said excitedly sitting on the floor beside the chair. He reminded me of a puppy in a way. He seemed really happy and excited all of the time.  
"Really? Well it's not all that hard when you've been using it for years," Uncle Al told him before he clapped his hands and held my bad ankle in his hands. Alchemy came really easy to Uncle Al. I was told that Dad used to be able to use alchemy even better than Uncle Al but something happened that made him unable to use alchemy. They still hadn't told me what it was. I wasn't sure if even Alex knew.

Uncle Al let go of my ankle, I had always looked away when he or Auntie Elle healed any part of me. The light always creeped me out. "There you go, Sarah! Remember though; be careful on that ankle for a bit. It's going to be weak for a while," Uncle Al told me. I nodded. He always gave me the 'be careful' lecture every time he had to heal me.

"Man, alchemy is awesome," Maes said suddenly. Uncle Al had gone into the kitchen to help Mom with dinner.  
"Yeah we hear this every day" Alex said appearing out of nowhere. "Maes here can't do alchemy." He added smirking. Maes gave him a dirty look as he stood up.  
"At least I try!" Maes argued. I smiled. Why hadn't Alex told me about him? He seemed nice enough.

It was silent for a moment. Alex didn't look all that talkative, and Maes didn't seem comfortable suddenly. I looked over at the adults. Uncle Al and Dad were still talking about things they could do to renovate Auntie Elle's old house. Mom and Auntie Elle probably wouldn't be done cooking dinner for an hour or two.

"Hey, you guys wanna go outside?" I asked them suddenly. Alex looked at me and raised an eyebrow.  
"And do what?" He asked curiously.  
"What do you mean what? The woods are nice this time of summer." I said and smirked. When we were younger and studied alchemy together we would practice in the woods. Alex smiled. Maes gave us both weird looks.

"What are you guys talking about…?" He asked cautiously. Alex just smiled at him.  
"A stroll through the woods… no big deal right, Sarah?" Alex turned to me.  
"Nope, totally alright…" Maes couldn't decide to look at questioningly. He just followed Alex as he led the way outside.

"Be back by eight for supper, kids!" Mom yelled after us.  
"Of course Mom!" I yelled back before Alex had the chance to.

"Remind me again why we're out here?" Maes asked as he walked along side me. Alex was a few steps ahead of us, checking out the places he hadn't seen in years.  
"Dad doesn't approve of us learning alchemy. I think it has something to do with the fact that he can't use it anymore" I told him. He still gave me a weird look. I didn't elaborate, but instead just kept walking.

It had begun to get dark; it probably wasn't a good idea to practice alchemy in the dark but oh well. Alex would do it anyways. He didn't seem to care whether or not Dad saw him transmutating. If he was caught I would get in trouble too…

Alex had stopped suddenly, indicating he thought we were far enough from the house.

"Alex… what if Dad finds out?" I asked cautiously, regretting my suggestion of coming out here. Alex just shrugged.  
"Then you'll come live with us" He said nonchalantly. I frowned as he knelt to the ground and started drawing out a circle in the dirt. The idea seemed… impossible, but once he said it I found myself actually thinking about it. Maes glanced down at the transmutation circle but then back to me. The look in his eyes told me he was concerned but I wasn't about to say anything.

Your dad really doesn't like you two using alchemy, does he?" He asked, standing between us. Alex laughed while I shook my head.  
"Not at all," I said quietly before sitting against a tree. "If he found out I tried studying it, he would freak" Maes nodded, understanding. Leaving Alex's side, Maes came to sit by me.

"I don't know, man. Alchemy seems pretty cool but if doing it does gonna get Sarah in trouble then why don't you just don't do it around her?" Maes told Alex, but he wasn't listening. He was already transmuting something. A light flashed and a chair shot out of the ground. It looked to be made of stone and not comfortable at all, but Alex collapsed into it and groaned.

"Today has been a long day," he grumbled, closing his eyes.  
"Sure sounds like it," I said sarcastically.  
"Once again, why are we out here? All you've done is transmute a chair" Maes said uncertain. Alex frowned at him.  
"It's a nice place to think okay?" he replied irritated. I looked at Maes confused. Maybe he knew why he was so grouchy all of a sudden. He shrugged. We sat in an awkward silence for a few moments. Awkward silences seemed to be a thing that happened frequently.

"Is it something to do with Jay?" Maes asked. Alex threw his shoe at him.  
"Don't even," was all he said as Maes caught the shoe. Chuckling, he tossed the shoe back.  
"It is, isn't it?" Maes teased him. I looked between the both of them, confused. Who was Jay?  
"Who's Jay?" I asked curious. Alex's face went red and I gasped. "It's a girl isn't it?! Oooh, wait until Mom finds out!" Maes nudged me and shook his head as Alex looked away from me. Had I missed something?

"Jay's not a girl, Sarah. He's Jean Havoc's son. You remember him, right?" Alex asked me quietly. I nodded in confusion. "Well, he and I are kind of sorta maybe dating." I didn't respond at first. I didn't know how to respond. Alex was still avoiding having to look at me.

"That's great, Alex!" I blurted out. This time he finally looked at me. "You found someone! It doesn't matter he's a guy!" I told him happily. So this is what he had been trying to tell me. I heard Maes chuckle under his breath. I resisted the urge to elbow him in the ribs. Alex's frown quickly turned into a smile.

"Really, Sarah? You mean that?" He asked, almost doubtfully. I smiled and nodded.  
"At least one of us is getting some" I said smirking. Maes burst out in laughter and at the sight of Alex's reddening face, so did I.

"H-hey! It's not funny!" He yelled at us. Eventually I calmed down enough to ask him.  
"Is this what you wanted to tell me on the phone? " I asked and he nodded, frowning slightly. "It's not that big of a deal, Alex. Now come on you two, dinner should be ready soon. Mom made meatloaf," I told the two of them as I stood up and brushed the dirt off my legs. They murmured in agreement and started to follow me back.

It took us longer to get back than it did for us to get out there in the first place. I blamed the darkness and Maes. He kept running into trees and tripping over tree roots that I eventually just grabbed his hand and guided him the rest of the way. Alex had ended up leading the way again, and we followed. By the time we got back, dinner was just about to be put on the table. I hadn't realized I was still holding onto Maes' hand until Auntie Elle gave me a questioning look. I dropped it immediately. If there was something my Dad didn't like more than me learning alchemy, it was me being around boys.

Dinner was loud, as to be expected. Dad loosened up and made corny jokes whereas Alex nearly flipped out when Uncle Al told him Auntie Elle was pregnant and that they were moving into her old house. Mom and Auntie Elle were discussing the Meatloaf recipe and I listened to the rest of the boys as they talked about things ranging from how Uncle Al once dated a princess to how Dad wished he drank more milk when he was a kid.

Although, throughout dinner, Maes was exceptionally quiet. I mean sure he didn't talk much as it was but at dinner he couldn't have said more than a few words. He seemed to have been listening to everyone else talk. He laughed at their jokes and nodded in agreement when necessary. But other than that, he was quiet.

After dinner, Uncle Al and Dad did the dishes while the other adults sat in the living and had a drink or two. As we were still kids to them, they told us to go to bed or at least stay out of the living room. We had ended up going to Alex's room.

I had been in Alex's room very few times since he had been kicked out. It was neat and organized. He had notebooks laying everywhere, though. There was no way he would have been able to keep his alchemy a secret from Dad for much longer than he did in the first place. We talked about stupid things. Alex asked about old friends and Maes asked what life was like in the country. In return, I asked them everything I could. They explained to me what life was like in the city, what it was like to ride on the train. Maes told me about his sister Emily that was off at college. Alex told me all about Jay. I felt closer to my brother than I had in a long time. He trusted me to keep his 'secret' a secret from our family until he could tell them.

Eventually, Mom came in and told us it was time for bed. At first, I just laid down on the floor where I sat, but Mom wasn't having any of that. She barely gave me enough time to say goodnight to the boys before basically dragging me out of the room and forcing me to go to my own. I went without an argument.

The day had been full of excitement. I thought to myself as I collapsed into bed. A baby cousin on the way and my Auntie and Uncle moving closer to home, Uncle Al had to heal my ankle (again), Alex trusted me enough to tell me something he had been keeping secret for a long time, and I might have just found a new friend.

I had just gotten comfortable under my blanket when my door inched open.

"Luna..?" I asked quietly, calling for the dog. Wait… Luna always spent the night in Mom and Dad's room…

"I don't think so," A deeper voice than I expected came from the door. "You coming or what? Alex and I are going swimming" Maes? What was he talking about?


End file.
